It was about my late article, and it has been sent. I am very happy about that and much relieved. It went through four drafts in this space. Self flagellation was progressively removed from it. My problem is that the politics at work have had me emotionally exhausted for so long. I keep hoping I … More And Now: The Actually Important Memo
Perhaps my versions of a memo yesterday were unsatisfactory because they were too restrained, and thus sounded too formal (and as I said, either too worried, or too challenging, or both). I wrote a more informal, less careful version that Sue liked better and Human liked less. I am erasing all rejected versions so I … More I Want to Speak
My vote after considering this matter is not to speak, even though I was irritated then and have some concerns now. Reasons to speak are that it is important to stand for truth, claim dignity and hold ground. Reasons not to speak are to avoid raising spectres and to show strength by rising above. A … More To Speak or Not to Speak
In graduate school, we were once visited by a former co-T.A. who was now faculty elsewhere. She said, “Enjoy these days — they are the best of your lives!” I took this comment as the sort of formulaic thing Old Bambis have to say to Young Bambis, and left it at that. Many years later, … More An Academic Wednesday: Was Your Graduate Program Bad For Your Health?
How often do autodidacts appear as literary characters? How are they portrayed? Why do they fascinate? When are autodidacts liberated and liberating, and when are they impostors? How can you tell an impostor from a harbinger of new ideas? How do I, not an autodidact, explain to an autodidact who could be a harbinger of … More Academic Mondays: Des Autodidactes
Do you teach a late sophomore or early junior level introduction to literary genres in a language other than English? This is the course in which you learn to scan poetry. You learn to do close readings of four genres. You learn to formulate an analytical thesis statement. You learn all sorts of rhetorical terms. … More An Academic Thursday: The Introduction to Literature
1 A friend says her problem is not only the lack of resources, conditions, and funding for research, it is the lack of a research culture. She says she needs a research culture, and she clearly does not consider this need to be a personal failing. She believes it is normal. As we know, I … More Academic Mondays: Research Culture II
…Eye, nose, and throat irritation; headaches, loss of coordination, nausea… I can do outdoor painting with no trouble, but the oily sealant I finally found to put on the porch caused an allergic reaction costing $111 and a few bad days, as we know. Then, in a moment of madness, I started painting the kitchen, … More Distress Alert
You are supposed to disable Adaware to install Carbonite but I do not want to deinstall Adaware. I cannot see how to temporarily disable it. Et vous? Axé.
It is really difficult to make carpenters, of which I really need one, come to one’s house. I have calls out to three or four and apparently I am just not exciting enough. My desire to upgrade things is such that I am tempted, while waiting, to buy a Linux box. I would buy from … More Linux
coldhearted scientist وداد 